Truth be told, I’m a chicken snob.
Outside of a random chicken nugget or chicken wrap, I use only one part of the chicken in my recipes and only order one kind of chicken from a menu at a restaurant…boneless, skinless chicken breast.
I wish I could say that it is all health reasons. It isn’t.
It is because I have a squeamish fear of bones. So I can’t watch people gnaw on a bone (chicken or cow), nor can I eat it myself.
(Yes, I realize this makes me weird. My family teases me about it on a regular basis. I’m so glad I joined a ranching family.)
I have had a culinary chicken life of boneless, skinless chicken breasts, until now! I found out that my local store sells boneless thigh meat AND they have it on sale on a regular basis. (Happy Day!) So my first order of business was to make these amazing BBQ Chicken Sandwiches with Easy Slaw. While the recipe calls for BBQ Sauce, you can easily use Wing Sauce and Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches as well.
BBQ Chicken Sandwich With Easy Slaw
BBQ Chicken Sandwich Ingredients
8 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Thighs, washed and patted dry
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 cups of your favorite BBQ or Wing Sauce
6 whole wheat or white bakery hamburger buns
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine onion powder, garlic powder, brown sugar and chili powder in a small bowl. Set aside.
3. Place thigh meat in a tin-foil lined 9×13 baking pan. Drizzle olive oil on top and use hands to evenly coat chicken with oil.
4. Sprinkle dry mixture on top of thighs. Once again, use your hands to even distribute rub over all the thigh meat.
5. Pour BBQ or Wing Sauce over meat. Turn meat over once to coat, but DO NOT rub sauce on.
6. Cover with foil and bake for one hour. Remove foil and baste every 15 minutes three more times (for an additional 45 minutes). You want the meat to start falling apart. If needed add 1/4 cup of water in the bottom of roasting pan if it becomes too dry.
7. Transfer meat to small platter and shred with forks.
8. Place meat on hamburger buns and top with favorite sauce and slaw (recipe below).
Easy Slaw Ingredients
1 green onion, chopped
1/2 head cabbage, sliced and chopped
1/2 cup of mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon Lawry’s Season Salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon lemon-pepper seasoning
1 tablespoon white vinegar
Directions
1. Mix mayonnaise, Lawry’s, black pepper, sugar, lemon-pepper and white vinegar in a small bowl, Set aside.
2. Add cabbage and green onion to a large bowl. Pour liquid ingredients and mix together thoroughly.
3. Cover and place in refrigerator for one hour.
Which store sells the bonesless chicken thighs and what is the good sale price for them usually? Thank you!
I usually find them at Hen House…usually under $1.50 per pound on sale.
Thanks for sharing! I only use chicken breasts too because I hate the fat and bones in all of the rest of it. I think my kids would love this, but unfortunately they closed the Hen House in Missouri and it’s not worth the drive.
Which Hen House closed?
There was one in Lee’s Summit. It has been closed for a few years now I think.
Thanks Kelly for the recipe! Yes, boneless chicken thighs can be a great alternative to boneless, skinless chicken breasts. We notice when cooking with them, they also don’t dry out as easily as chicken breasts.
I have come to love bonelesss thighs…all the benefits of breast meat, but much cheaper per pound.